In certain signal transmission applications employing flat multiconductor cables, signal shielding requirements demand that each signal conductor be disposed between a pair of ground conductors dedicated solely to that signal conductor. The succession of conductor assignments laterally of the elongate cable is thus G (ground), S (signal), G, G, S, G, G, S, G, etc. While it is preferable to mass-terminate such cable, by insulation-piercing techniques such as are shown in Applicant's copending, commonly-assigned patent application, Ser. No. 143,003, filed on Apr. 23, 1980, entitled "Ground Terminating Connector for Flat Cable", and also in commonly-assigned U.S. Pat. No. 4,027,941 to Narozny, these techniques are not applicable where conductor spacing is so close as to afford less than adequate room for insulation-piercing. Considering a practical instance, the spacing between laterally successive signal conductors in the GSGGSG system may be 0.05 inch. However, the spacing between each such signal conductor and each of its dedicated ground conductors, center line-to-center line, may be as little as 0.010 inch. With conductors themselves being of 0.007-inch diameter, the matter of providing enough strength in an insulation-piercing contact in such limited space environment renders mass termination difficult at the very least.
Various prior art efforts have addressed the matter of mass-ground-terminating flat multiconductor cable by preparing the cable to have bared conductor ends which are then inserted into connectors and placed in engagement with contacts for termination. Such efforts, set forth in the statement filed herein pursuant to 37 CFR 1.97 and 1.98, are limited in that they do not provide selectivity of placement of output ground connector contacts, such as in linewise or coplanar disposition with output signal connector contacts.